Miyagi Prefecture is located in Japan on the northern part of Honshu Island (map). It is located in the Tohoku Region of that island along the Pacific Ocean and Sendai Bay and its capital and largest city is Sendai. Miyagi Prefecture covers an area of 2,812 square miles (7,285 sq km) and it has a population of 2,337,513 (December 2010 estimate).
On March 11, 2011 Japan was struck by a magnitude 9.0 earthquake that was centered in the ocean just 80 miles (130 km) east of Sendai and Miyagi Prefecture. The earthquake was so powerful that it caused a massive tsunami to hit the region. The tsunami devastated the city of Sendai and the prefecture's coast and the earthquake caused severe damage throughout much of Miyagi Prefecture and killed and/or displaced thousands of people. According to the BBC, as many as 15,000 people may have been killed in the prefecture as a result of the earthquake and tsunami.
Miyagi Prefecture was the area that was hit the hardest due to the disasters and the earthquake was considered to have been one of the five strongest since 1900. It is believed that the main island of Japan (on which Miyagi Prefecture is located) moved eight feet (2.4 m) due to the earthquake.
The following is a list of ten geographic facts to know about Miyagi Prefecture:
1) Miyagi Prefecture began as a part of the Mutsu province, an ancient province that was made up of the present-day prefectures of Fukushima, Miyagi, Iwate and Aomori. During its early history, the region was administered by a variety of different peoples.
2) In the early 1600s, Date Masamune, a Japanese landlord and samurai, moved to the region and became the ruler of Mutsu. At that time he built the castle of Sendai and in 1601, he founded the city of Sendai. A little over 200 years later, Sendai Prefecture was formed and took over the region of Mutsu province. One year later it was renamed Miyagi Prefecture.
3) As a prefecture, Miyagi has a high level of governmental power because it is the highest administrative division of Japan below the federal government. The country is divided into 47 prefectures which are similar to the 50 states of the United States or the provinces of Canada.
4) Miyagi Prefecture is sub-divided into ten different districts (the equivalent of a county in the United States) and it has 36 municipalities. The largest municipality in Miyagi Prefecture is Sendai and it is the main economic and population center of the Tohoku Region.
5) Miyagi Prefecture is the center of the Tohoku Region's economy because of the manufacturing industries that dominate Sendai. However, the prefecture also has a large amount of fishing and agriculture. The main agricultural products produced in Miyagi Prefecture are rice and livestock.
6) Today Miyagi Prefecture is located in the central part of Japan's Tohoku Region on the island of Honshu. It is bordered by the prefectures of Fukushima, Yamagata, Akita and Iwate. It also has coastlines on the Pacific Ocean and Sendai Bay.
7) Miyagi Prefecture has a varied topography with high mountains on its western borders and along the northeast coast. It also has a central plain around the city of Sendai and the Oshika Peninsula is located on the northern part of the prefecture. Miyagi Prefecture is also home to Matsushima, a group of 260 tiny scenic islands located off of its coast.
8) Miyagi Prefecture's climate is considered humid subtropical and it has warm, wet summers and cold, dry winters. Most of its precipitation falls in the summer but it does snow in the winter. Miyagi's capital, Sendai has an average January low temperature is 28˚F (-2˚C) and its average August high temperature is 82˚F (28˚C).
9) The area of Miyagi Prefecture is geologically active and most of the mountains on its western borders are inactive volcanoes. There are also active hot springs in Sendai and large earthquakes are not uncommon in Miyagi because of its location near the Japan Trench - a subduction zone where the Pacific and North American plates meet. For example, in 2005 a magnitude 7.2 earthquake occurred about 65 miles (105 km) from Sendai and most recently a massive 9.0 earthquake struck 80 miles (130 km) from Sendai and devastated much of Miyagi Prefecture.
10) Because of scenic areas like Matsushima and the remains of the ancient Sendai Castle, Miyagi Prefecture is popular with visitors to Japan. Sendai is also considered a cultural center and it is home to many different festivals. The most famous of these is the Sendai Tanabata, a Japanese star festival. It is the largest such festival in Japan.
To learn more about Miyagi Prefecture, visit its official government website.
References
BBC. (20 March 2011). "Japan: Miyagi Prefecture Death Toll 'May Reach 15,000.'" BBC News Asia-Pacific. Retrieved from: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-12798579
Wikipedia.org. (22 March 2011). Miyagi Prefecture - Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Miyagi_Prefecture